ravi@mcnc.UUCP (Ravi Subrahmanyan) (12/25/86)
[ Poodles? You sure? ] Here's another tale of the piecing together of a hard-disk, including my evaluation (financial and otherwise) of the Ultimate Question: Why Bother?? Anyway, it all began one dark and stormy night when I read a posting describing a DMA-->SCSI adapter from Berkeley Microsystems. My curiosity aroused, I called them up, and found that they offered the board together with an Adaptek 4000 controller for $250. Also, the board has a battery-backed up clock which can be used to update the ST's internal clock, etc. Anyway, it seemed that this might be a nice way to get a hard drive, provided I could get a good deal on a bare drive. I snooped around, and the basic choices (within my budget) were a Seagate ST225N, and a CDC Wren 9415. The price breakdowns were roughly as follows: a) DMA-->SCSI : ~125 b) SCSI controller: ~125 c) ST506 compatible hard drive: 1) Seagate ST225N (20Mb) ~325 2) Control Data 9415 (30Mb) ~325 d) Power supply: The CDC needs 4A at 12V during Sjartup, so it needs a fairly hefty supply: ~75 It was obvious that making the 20Mb system would not save me anything, at best I would barely break even. However, the CDC looked promising, and so I decided to go ahead and take the plunge. 3 weeks later, I have a roaring monster strewn all over the table in front of me; it's noisy, the table looks like a Klingon cruiser, but it does work, and I have a 30 Mb drive. Is it all worth it? Well, Tech-Specialities now advertises a hard disk kit for $595. They give you some sort of a case and power supply, with space/power for 2 half-height drives, one Seagate ST225, and the controller cards. Considering the convenience that offers, an experience like mine is of dubious value. Finding an appropriate power supply was a pain, plus the CDC is full height, so mounting the boards needed some machine work. Also, I don't have a case, so it's sitting out front in all it's glory. But, on the other hand, I do have a 30Mb drive for ~700. Also, I'm certain it's a faster drive (it's voice-coil), for what that's worth. I think I can get an IBM-PC case for ~30, and if I can put it all in that, at least it'll be packaged. Also, I can add a second drive for ~350 (the controller + drivers can handle two drives), so I have the option of expanding cheaply at some future date if I wish. All in all, it's almost worth the hassle, especially now that it's over. If you like making things, it's probably a good deal; one certainly breaks even. Finally, it adds an element of (possibly unpleasant) surprise to the whole thing.. (will it work or won't it? Did I just blow $$$? Will the old lady make me sleep in Fido's room for the rest of the decade? Should I have it (Fido's room) carpeted before I start this, just in case?.. you get the idea..) Hope this fires up some intrepid adventurers out there, -ravi